House of Horrors
by Southpaw
Summary: Ayumi has discovered another supposedly haunted house. Why doesn't Conan feel so good about it? (this story is now complete!)
1. How did I get myself into this?

Submitted for your approval is the very beginning of my first Detective Conan fic.

I do not own Detective Conan, any of its characters, or the lines taken from the anime series. Just like everything else, I'm using them for my own and others' enjoyment.

Note: although I am only using the Japanese names, I have left off the honorific suffixes, because I have so much trouble remembering who uses which one with whom. Also, I flip back and forth between using the names Shinichi and Conan ( /NOT A SPOILER/ because they're the same person), depending on my needs.

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Chapter 1: How did I get myself into this?

"The people in the neighborhood told me that the house is filled with all sorts of bizarre books and toys, and that the kid who lived there all alone was eaten by a monster!" Ayumi filled in her friends on her latest investigations.

'That is intriguing,' Shinichi thought. 'A young boy is living alone in a strange house on Second Street.' "So... are you sure it's the right place?"

"Pretty sure... I checked, it's the last house on the left."

The Detective Boys had just solved an extremely difficult case, one that had actually been going on for five or so years. The rush was too much for the four second-graders, and they were already contemplating their next adventure, while waiting for the final bell to ring.

The hair on the back of Conan's neck bristled along with the shiver that ran down his spine, at his friends' excitement. 'That sounds like _my_ house!' It was all he could do to keep from letting this small detail escape his mouth, though.

Ayumi, Mitsuhiko, and Genta were already making plans for the after school detour. This made things all the more difficult for Conan. 'We can't go to my house, but if I try to stop them, they'll get suspicious... Maybe I can get them to postpone it, and then ask Professor Agasa what he thinks I should do.' He slammed one fist onto his other hand, and re-focused on the conversation.

Ayumi noticed. "What do you think, Conan," she asked.

"About what?"

"Checking out the abandoned house on Second Street," Mitsuhiko reminded him.

Conan gave his trademark 'trying to stall for an excuse' smile. "Um... today isn't a good day. I have a lot to do after school. I'll talk to Professor Agasa, though, and see if he can let us in or something, since I think you're talking about the house right next to his."

The other three wondered at his weird reaction, but before they could protest, the bell rang to end the school day, and they parted ways. However, instead of going back to the Mouri's (who he had been staying with since he was poisoned), Conan did in fact pay a visit to his good friend, Professor Agasa.

A rather tubby, balding man in a white lab coat answered the door and invited Conan inside. "Oh, Shinichi, it's been a while. How are you, my boy?"

The three-foot-tall former high school student walked in without answering. He sat down on the sofa in Agasa's living room and contemplated how to break the news of the dilemma to his friend.

"You're not usually this quiet when you stop by... it must be something important."

"Professor, you remember that last case I solved with the other kids?" Agasa nodded. "Well, it got them on a haunted house kick. I was so wrapped up in dealing with the effects of the poison in the days after I was attacked, that I didn't see there had been articles in the newspaper. The three of them have since heard rumors which must have spread based on those articles, and now they want to investigate my house because they're under the impression it might also be haunted. If I tell them no, they'll get suspicious, but if I go through with it, someone might figure out who I really am!" Conan made a face when Agasa started to chuckle. "It's not funny! What should I do?!?"

Agasa thought for a while about their new predicament. Everything Shinichi had said was absolutely correct, and they had to be very careful. It suddenly dawned on him that if Ran would be walking by and saw lights on, this could cause some serious trouble. He brought some snacks out from the kitchen, and sat down next to Conan while they ate.

After a while, he broke the silence. "You must not bring them over here."

"But, they're already set on it! And... I told them I'd see if you could let us in."

A puzzled look crossed Professor Agasa's face. "But you can..."

"I know that, but they don't." Conan was standing on the sofa cushion in anticipation of getting a straight answer out of the old man.

"Tell me, my boy, did you consider what would happen if Ran stopped by?"

Conan plopped back down. "No, I hadn't..." He remembered all the times he made her cry, just because he could no longer show her his real face. If she came by and saw that there were lights on... He looked up at Agasa, eyes wide with fear. "There are many more implications with this than I realized."

Agasa nodded. "I gave you my suggestion..."

"Yeah. I should be getting back before Ran worries too much. I'll call you later, after I've thought about it some more. I'm pretty sure I'm going to need your help, though."

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The next day at school, the Detective Boys were eager to hear if Conan had been successful.

'Well, here goes...' "Hey guys, guess what? I talked to Professor Agasa last night, and it looks like he'll be able to let us into that other house." ' /sigh/ I hope I'll be able to keep this according to the plan...'

Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko cheered and did a three-way high five, while Conan hid his face in his hand.

It was all they could do to wait patiently for the bell that marked the end of the school day. When that moment finally came, Ayumi took charge. She looked at the clock, feeling lucky that the sun was setting earlier this time of year. She smiled. "Okay. We'll meet in front of Professor Agasa's house at sunset." She walked away, assuming (correctly) that the boys would follow her instructions.

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Conan went back to the Mouri's apartment to drop off his backpack – there was no use in carrying it around. He figured he would head over a little early to make sure the plan was straight. He was about to walk back out the door, when he heard Ran come up behind him. He turned around to face her.

"What are you up to this afternoon, Conan," she asked with a smile.

He thought for a few seconds about the best way to answer. "I'm going over to Professor Agasa's house with the other kids for a little bit." Conan smiled – it wasn't a lie, but it certainly wasn't the whole truth. He hated doing this to her, but things could get very bad if she knew what was really going on. "Why?"

"I was just curious. Have fun!"

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End Chapter 1

A/N: Well, I hope you liked it. I'm being more patient with the progress of this story, so we'll see what happens!


	2. The Set Up

Hey everybody! Chapter 2, ready to go!!!! I would have posted it yesterday, but something weird was going on, and the document manager didn't accept the file. Thank you all so much for your reviews, I think it's the most I've ever gotten in such a short period of time :)

I'd like to set a few things straight before I get started: first of all, this is not my actual first fanfiction, just my first Detective Conan fanfiction... and for good measure, I still don't own any of it except this particular story.

Second, I'm sorry to anyone who is unfamiliar with the characters' Japanese names. When I learn about name changes, I have a very strong tendency towards authenticity, so I'll more often than not use the original names. Here is a quick glossary:

English / Japanese

Jimmy / Shinichi

Rachel / Ran

Amy / Ayumi

George / Genta

Mitch / Mitsuhiko

Richard / Kogoro

Booker / Yusaku

Vivian / Yukiko

Third (and this is directed at one particular review), I'm doing things this way for a reason. In order to have the proper angst level, it needs to be set up :)

Okay, enough of me talking!

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Chapter 2: The Set Up

Professor Agasa opened his front door for Conan. "Oh, Shinichi, how was your day?"

"Alright, I guess. I'm worried, though. I saw Ran this afternoon before coming over, and I had to tell her a partial truth. I don't know, but there's a possibility she might come over later."

"As long as you didn't seem too jumpy, everything should go according to your plan."

"I hope so." Conan looked down at his watch, and then out the windows. The sky was turning orange, and the clouds were becoming mere silhouettes, shadows of themselves. The sun sank low into a bright red circle. "The others should be here soon; Ayumi said to meet at sunset."

Agasa stood up. "Let's go see if they're here, then."

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Ayumi stood at the gate with a full backpack and her hands on her hips. "You came early," she pointed out while looking him up and down. "And you didn't bring anything _again_."

Genta and Mitsuhiko arrived just in time to hear the end of the rant. It only took Genta a second to feel the need to interfere. "Hey, Conan, if you're making Ayumi upset, I'm gonna have to do something about it."

Conan looked up at the 'towering' bulk standing beside him. He smiled. "I didn't say anything. She's upset that I was here early, and that I didn't bring anything."

"With good reason," Mitsuhiko interjected. "You know, you should really try to be more considerate."

"But...!"

Professor Agasa wouldn't let the argument go any farther. "Let's go inside. I have some snacks ready, and you guys can discuss your plan."

Ayumi looked pleadingly at the older man. "Can't we just go inside already? We don't need to talk about it; we already have a plan, right Conan?" She turned her head to smile sweetly at him.

This caught Conan off guard. _He_ had a plan, but _they_ didn't. He frantically looked back and forth between his four friends. "I... uh..."

"I, for one, would like to just get going."

'Good old Mitsuhiko,' Shinichi thought. 'The sooner we get this over with, the better. I do appreciate your trying to divert them, Professor, but now you see what's really going on here.' He looked up at the scientist and nodded.

"Are you sure," Agasa asked, implying both intended messages. Conan nodded again; and he received a resounding "yes" from the other three.

"Okay, then. Follow me."

They walked a few yards to the next gate. The latch in the wrought iron was still too high for the young detectives, so Agasa opened it for them. Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko took a few careful steps into the front yard and turned around to make sure Conan was following them. He was deep in conversation with the professor.

"Come on, what's the holdup," Genta asked.

Once again, Conan was forced to tell a partial truth. "I was reminding Professor Agasa that he can't go yet, because the front door is probably locked too."

They moved up to the porch, and Agasa opened the front door. The ruse nearly fell apart when they got inside.

"Hey, wait a minute," Mitsuhiko said. "Why do you have a key to this house?"

"Yeah, and why did we come straight in through the front door," Ayumi added.

Genta looked straight at Conan. "Something seems a little fishy, and I think there's something you're not telling us."

Conan started to sweat, and took a step backwards right into the mass that was his friend the professor. Luckily, the older man had a quick response. "I am good friends with the people who live here," he said in a hushed voice. "We came in through the front because, to the best of my knowledge, there is no one else here right now." He winked at Conan, while the others looked around the spacious foyer.

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Mitsuhiko came back first. "So... who used to live here?"

Agasa looked at Conan, who gave a subtle nod. "It was Yusaku and Yukiko Kudo, and their son Shinichi." This revelation got the expected response, so he continued the story. "Yusaku writes mystery books, and Yukiko is an actress. When Shinichi was fourteen, the two of them went to America."

"So, the story I heard was true – there was a boy living here by himself..." Ayumi was listening intently by this point.

"Yes, but about a month and a half ago, he disappeared. Most people think he died. Only three people really know the whole story."

They would not be deterred. "Are you one of the people, Professor?"

Now it was Agasa's turn to show surprise. "No. I was only told the things that were not confidential."

"Then how do you know how many people know the story?"

"The person who told me let it slip. Now, if you don't mind, I need to get back to my lab. Could I speak to you for a moment please, Conan?" The pair went back towards the door.

"Okay," Ayumi said to Mitsuhiko and Genta. "I figured out a plan – maybe there's some clues in this house to explain what happened to that famous high school detective!"

Conan and Agasa were deep in their own conversation, so they didn't hear the other one. Agasa wanted to know that the boy was fully prepared. "Are you sure about your plan, Shinichi?"

"Yeah, I got it all under control. After you leave, I'll go unplug the answering machine. That way, I'll be able to count the number of rings according to the emergency code I gave you. I'll also go grab a flashlight from the kitchen. I don't want to turn any lights on, just in case; and then I can also use it as my signal to you."

"Good luck, and please be careful. You have smart friends."

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End Chapter 2

A/N: I don't feel like there's anything to say this time, so catch ya later!


	3. Separations and Suspicions

Sorry for the wait, but I can only think so fast. Anyway, here is the next installment!

/bows/ I'm sorry I didn't address specific reviewers last time, I didn't know it would offend people. It's just that I'm not used to getting so many reviews in such a short period of time, and I thought that since most of them said similar things, it would be alright to address them together. And, I don't mind flames as much as some people, AS LONG AS THEY'RE CONSTRUCTIVE. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about ;)

I really do appreciate all the reviews, though. They make me feel special.

Oh, and I still don't own Detective Conan...

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Chapter 3: Separations and Suspicions

Ran was sitting on the couch doing homework in the room that doubled as the living room as well as her dad's office, when her woman's intuition kicked in. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something didn't sit right regarding the hasty conversation that had passed between her and Conan no more than an hour before. Even stranger still, though, she suspected that Shinichi was somehow involved. She looked over to where Kogoro was dozing at his desk, and sighed. Her troubles would have to be put on the back burner, because the upcoming exam took precedence.

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The first room the Detective Boys wandered into was the dining room. The furniture had become quite dusty from lack of use, but that didn't really make it any less beautiful. Conan wiped a finger along the top of a chair back, putting so much dust into the air that he sneezed.

"Shhhh," Genta whispered loudly. "Do you want to get us in trouble?"

"Sorry," Conan answered sheepishly. 'It's ironic and kind of amusing. I wonder if I was ever like that...' he thought.

There were two other doors coming off of the room, and Conan slipped through one of them while the other Detective Boys ogled at the China cabinet. He closed the door as quietly as he could so that they wouldn't notice his absence, and let out a heavy sigh.

"Okay, time to get to work." Conan looked around the room he now found himself in (which happened to be the kitchen), trying to remember where certain things were kept. "Man, it's been a while... First things first, let's get the emergency mechanisms into place." He walked over to the cabinet that had the phone sitting on top of it. He pushed one of the phone's buttons, and one of the LED's turned off. He then opened the top drawer and pulled out a heavy-duty flashlight. As he lifted it over the side of the drawer, he almost dropped it. "Phew, that was close. I guess I forgot how heavy this thing was..."

He opened up another door which led to the stairs that went down to the basement. He flipped a light switch, knowing that there were no outside windows down there, and went to search for a particular old box containing a few mementos of his childhood.

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Meanwhile, the Detective Boys had taken in their fill of all the expensive-looking dishes displayed in the dining room. They turned around to see what kind of interesting clues Conan might have picked up, only to find that he was no longer there.

"Where'd he go," Ayumi screamed, forgetting that she thought she needed to be secretive.

Mitsuhiko tried to comfort her. "I don't know... Maybe we should try to look for him."

"He can take care of himself," Genta interjected. "We have much more important things to do, like figuring out what happened to Mr Kudo."

Ayumi gave him a shocked look. "We can't just leave him like that!"

"Yes, we can. He is the one who wandered off, of course."

They knew they couldn't just pull out the chairs and sit at the table, so they went back out the way they came, and looked for a more casual room where they could have the snacks that Ayumi brought.

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Ran finished her homework, and dinner, before realizing what time it was. Conan should have been back by now. "Then again, he is over at Professor Agasa's... I'm sure everything is fine." She couldn't shake her earlier concerns, though, and resolved to call Shinichi's house after the TV show ended, just in case.

At the end of the half hour, she picked up the receiver and dialed the old, familiar number. Much to her surprise, she only heard the line ringing. She knew there was an answering machine, and it worried her that it wasn't picking up. She let it go for ten rings, and then hung up. "Dad, I'm going over to Shinichi's house."

"Why? You know he's not back yet."

"I'm worried that something happened. I just tried calling over there, and even the answering machine didn't pick up."

Kogoro knew his daughter wouldn't do anything stupid. Because of that, he didn't really care what she did, as long as he knew where she was. "The tape probably filled up, or something. It's probably nothing to worry about."

Ran put her jacket on, and opened the door. "I'm going over anyway, just to make sure."

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Conan came back upstairs with his arms full, and a sly grin plastered across his face. He didn't really want to do this to them, but he couldn't let them figure out his secret. If they wanted a haunted house, they were gonna get one.

Then the phone rang.

The loud noise startled him so much that he nearly dropped the pile of fabric. Instead, he set it down on the kitchen table, and waited patiently to listen for the number of rings. When it went past four, he knew something was wrong. He ran to the window to shine the flashlight towards Professor Agasa's house, when he realized who it must have been that called – the only other person he talked to on a relatively regular basis. He hoped it wasn't her, but left the flashlight on in the window anyway, and took his pile up to his bedroom.

When the phone rang, the other three Detective Boys also started to panic. Who would be calling an abandoned house? It was then that they noticed Conan still hadn't come back to find them yet. They each took one of the flashlights Mitsuhiko had brought with him.

"Okay, no going upstairs or downstairs until we know there's no one else on this floor," Ayumi instructed the two boys. "Got it?" The other two consented, and they split up to search the ground floor of the house.

Conan had safely made it partway down the hall before the others left the TV room. He felt something in his pocket, and remembered he had turned off the ringer on his cell phone so that only he would know when he got a call. He went into his room and closed the door before picking it up. "Moshi, moshi."

"Shinichi, you left the flashlight on in the kitchen window. What's wrong?"

"The phone rang a few minutes ago, and I know it couldn't have been you, because the person didn't hang up until after ten rings. In my gut, I think it may have been Ran, and if I know her, she got worried at not hearing the machine pick up, and is on her way over..."

"What would you like me to do?"

"Head her off, stall her, anything you can do until I bring the others back over."

"I'll try, but you know how she is..."

"Yeah, that's what has me worried. Let's hope it wasn't her."

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End Chapter 3

A/N: That was short, I know... It kinda pains me that I couldn't go longer before posting, but given what I was able to include in this chapter, I thought that was a good stopping point.

LED is short for light-emitting diode, and they're generally these little lights that are used for indicators.

Stay Tuned!


	4. Close Calls

Thank you for your patience, it is greatly appreciated. You should all know better than to think I own any part (other than this story) of the amazing manga and anime commonly known as Detective Conan.

I would like to dedicate this chapter to my loyal reviewers: Silver Sky Magician, mysteriousangelgirl, PRIVATE, and of course my very good friend SailorRanger :)

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Chapter 4: Close Calls

The Detective Boys walked through one of the doors that led into the kitchen, the one that Conan had used to get to the staircase. The first thing Mitsuhiko noticed was the flashlight. He went over to the window. "We shouldn't let the batteries run out... Hey, isn't that Professor Agasa's house?"

"Yeah," Genta noted.

"I wonder why the flashlight was on and facing that way..." Ayumi said.

"I don't know, but we should try to find Conan soon, before something bad happens."

Mitsuhiko saw some cups in the drain next to the sink, and pulled a chair over so he could get a drink. "Anyone else thirsty?" He received one yes, and one no. Nobody thought anything of the fact that there was water coming out of the tap, because they had just witnessed something similar a few days ago.

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Conan was putting on one of his old costumes, when he heard the water running. He remembered that he had left some cups in the drain to dry last time he was there, and decided that his friends were probably just thirsty. There were two windows in Shinichi's room, one that faced Professor Agasa's house, and one that faced the street. He remembered that he had left the flashlight on in the kitchen, and worried that if Ran was coming, that she would notice it. He kept an eye out the window that faced the street, while making sure to wait long enough that his friends would be out of the kitchen.

He decided he had waited long enough, when he saw the form of a girl with long hair moving down the street. Panicking, he put in another call to the Professor.

"Shinichi! I thought you would have been in the middle of your plan by now."

"I would, except that they went into the kitchen, and got drinks of water. I've been waiting for them to finish, so I can go back down to the basement."

"Oh."

"But more importantly right now is that I can see Ran out my window! I'm about to get started, but she can't come in... but we already talked about that. Do you have a plan?"

"Yes, and I hope it works."

"Okay, I'll catch back up with you in a little while."

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After the two Detective Boys finished their drinks, all three of them left the kitchen and walked around more, somehow landing themselves in the library. Dozens of shelves of books lined the walls from floor to ceiling. They looked at some of the spines. Many were in Japanese, but even more were in other languages that they didn't understand. From what they could tell, the majority, if not all, of the books were mystery novels. It was no wonder Shinichi was such a great detective.

Conan made sure they were deeply engrossed in the contents of the room before creeping back downstairs. He went back into the kitchen, relieved to find that the flashlight had been turned off. He also saw that they had left their cups in the sink, and washed them figuring that there wouldn't be time to do it later.

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Ran was about to open the gate and walk into the Kudos' front yard, when she saw Professor Agasa out of the corner of her eye. "Professor, what brings you out here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Conan said he was coming to visit you with his friends this evening, but he hasn't come home yet."

"But why would you come here, and not to my house?"

"Something told me to call Shinichi... I don't know why. But... when I called, the line just kept ringing. I'm sure something bad has happened." The worried look she gave the older man melted him. He put his arm around her shoulders, and guided her towards his house.

"Why don't you come inside? I'm sure Conan will come back soon."

"You mean he's not with you?"

"I... uh... He took his friends somewhere not long after they stopped by. He said they'd come back to my place to pick up their backpacks before going home."

Something didn't sit well with her, the way he hesitated, but his explanation seemed reasonable enough. "You're sure Shinichi isn't back yet, and that he's still okay?"

"No, he's not back yet, and he's still okay." A smile started to creep across his face at the last part, but he quickly hid it away again, so that it wouldn't arouse any more suspicions out of the girl. He breathed a sigh of relief when she relented and followed him next door.

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The Detective Boys heard the water running again in the kitchen. Ayumi and Mitsuhiko started to go back towards the sound, when Genta noticed something. "Hey guys, look what I found near this desk!" He held two small pieces of glass up in front of his eyes. "Whoa, things get all blurry when I do that."

"Then don't do it." Mitsuhiko took one and tried to look through it. "They must be lenses from a pair of glasses."

This confused Ayumi. "Why would there be just the lenses? Where'd the rest of them go?"

They would have pondered the mysterious lenses longer, except that they heard a scream coming from the direction of the kitchen. "That sounded like Conan!" They didn't know it, but he had fallen down the stairs to the basement after forgetting to turn the light back on. They rushed back to make sure he was okay.

Conan smiled as he rubbed his sore bottom. 'Heh, that killed two birds with one stone... now to implement phase B.' He set his bowtie-voice modulator for a deep, scary sound and pulled the mask over his face. He looked around to make sure there were plenty of things down there that he could bang on to make it sound like he was fighting someone.

The Detective Boys reached the kitchen in a matter of seconds. They saw the door open on the other side of the room and hurried over, immediately thinking the worst.

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End Chapter 4

A/N: Could you see the classic image of the dungeon doors closing? I sure could... It helped me decide that this was a good stopping point. At least two more chapters to go until the end, maybe three if it feels right.


	5. Who to Believe?

Hey everyone, sorry it took so long... /ducks out of the way of flying objects/

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Chapter 5: Who to Believe?

"Conan, are you okay," Ayumi cried.

It took him a second to answer, and when he did it sounded shaky. "Yeah, but I think there's something down here. I'm gonna go have a look around."

"We're coming down," proclaimed Genta.

"No!" Conan realized that had come out quite forceful, and lowered his voice a little bit knowing that no matter how much he advised them against it, they would still come down after him. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I gotta make sure you guys don't get hurt." The next sound his friends heard was of something being knocked over, and a strangely deep-sounding voice.

"Ha! Now I have you," it said.

Mitsuhiko had had enough. "I don't care how dangerous you say it is – we're coming down." Conan hid behind some boxes as they slowly made their way down the stairs.

Ayumi looked around, but she didn't see anybody. "Conan? Where did you go?"

Conan realized how powerful the voice modulator really was, when he set it to make it sound like he was about five feet farther back than where he was actually standing. "I'm over here!"

"Don't come any closer," the scary voice said, "or I may have to cause some physical damage. I don't really want to hurt anyone, but I will if you force me into it."

At that moment, Genta remembered his courage. "What do you want with Conan?"

The monster stood up head and shoulders above one of the stacks. The first thing the Detective Boys noticed was his face. The skin was all sagging and wrinkly, and the eyes were sunken in over sharp cheekbones. Its hair was long and scraggly, and the clothes were tattered, from years of neglect. In an attempt to be unlike the classic bad guy, it said "That's for me to know."

"Why you..." Genta was chomping at the bit for a fight, but held back when he felt Ayumi tug on the back of his shirt. He turned around to face her. "What's the deal, we gotta protect Conan!"

"What if this is the monster that ate Shinichi!?!? He's too strong, even for you." She was on the brink of tears, which melted all three boys' hearts.

Conan couldn't let it show, though, so he resumed his act. "You should listen to the girl. I could pick you off all in one shot, if I wanted." He started laughing maniacally, but changed back to his normal 'Conan' voice quickly, to keep the act up. "Go next door and get help! I've been able to determine how strong he is, and it's too much for you! Don't worry about me, I'll be able to last long enough until help gets here."

"Shut up, you," the monster retorted as he turned around and moved back down behind the boxes. Conan made a sound like he was being kicked in the stomach. "Go now! Hurry!"

The Detective Boys found no other option besides following Conan's directions. They ran back up the stairs, and out of the house.

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"At least one of us should have stayed down there," Genta realized.

"That monster was scary," Ayumi retorted. "I didn't want to stay down there by myself, and anyway it's too late now..."

Mitsuhiko looked at his watch. "Too much time has passed. If we wait any longer, it will be too late!" He kept going towards the next gate, with the other two in tow.

Conan waited until he heard the door shut before he pulled the mask off and relaxed. He hadn't realized how tense his body got from the rush of adrenaline. He went back upstairs to where he could get a better cell phone signal, and waited for the Professor's next phone call.

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The Detective Boys were breathing heavily when they arrived next door. Ran met them at the entrance. She counted the number of children standing in front of her. "Hey guys, where's Conan?"

"The...monster...got him..." Ayumi explained while trying to catch her breath.

Professor Agasa walked up behind Ran. "A monster, you say?"

"Yeah, the one that ate Shinichi! You have to come help us, we're not strong enough by ourselves!" implored Mitsuhiko.

Ran wasn't so quick to believe them even though Conan wasn't with them. She knew he had a certain knack for getting himself into dangerous situations, but they were just kids.

Agasa whispered in her ear so the other three couldn't hear him. "These kids and their imaginations... Why don't you take them home while I go see what Conan is up to? For now, it would be better to just play along with them."

She nodded. "Let's let Professor Agasa take care of this one, okay? I'll walk you guys home."

"But we have to make sure Conan is okay!"

Agasa wouldn't hear of it. He held up a finger and winked. "You may not know this, but my inventions are pretty good for fighting monsters. I'll just go back inside, and pick out the right one. There's nothing to worry about."

"But he's been down there for a really, really long time! He said he could last long enough to be rescued, but someone has to go _now_!"

Now it was Ran's turn to try. "You'll see him in school tomorrow, I promise. It's more important to me, Professor Agasa, Conan, Shinichi, and especially your parents, that you get home safely." At the mention of their parents, the Detective Boys relented. They waved to the professor, praying that he would be able to fulfill his promise. Ran didn't say anything else, but resolved in her mind to come right back after dropping them off.

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Conan watched impatiently while his friends tried to enlist some help. He wasn't worried, though, as long as they didn't come back inside. He knew there would be hell to pay later for his antics, but that didn't matter anymore when it came to keeping his secret. He was amazed it went as smoothly as it did, sure that his friends would have been more insistent on staying.

He felt the buzz of the cell phone in his pocket again. "Moshi, moshi."

"Shinichi, you did it! They're going home."

"Ran too?"

"I asked her to walk with them. She didn't say whether she was coming back or not."

Shinichi contemplated the weight of that statement. "I'm not sure I want to be here when she gets back."

"You may not have a choice in the matter. I just want to warn you, I'm coming in. They insisted someone come in and 'save' you, although I planned on stopping by before you left, anyway." He hung up the phone, and opened the front door. "Shinichi, where are you?"

"I'm in my room, be down in a minute! In the mean time, could you turn the answering machine back on? I rewashed the cups, but I wanted to make sure they were really leaving, so I didn't get to anything else. I moved a few of the boxes around in the basement, but other than that, the only things are the basement light and door. I'll take care of the boxes next time I'm here. Actually, don't worry about the basement at all; I still need to put my costume back down there." He appeared at the top of the stairs back in his school uniform, with his arms full. He looked at his friend. "Who'd have guessed these would come in handy again?"

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Conan came back upstairs after putting the costume back in its storage location. He looked at the clock, and then at Agasa. "It's been a while... I'm surprised Ran isn't back yet." The sun had set over half an hour before, and he decided it was okay to turn on the kitchen light because it simply didn't matter anymore. He joined Agasa at the kitchen table.

The professor was dying to know exactly what had transpired. He waited to ask until Conan got himself situated.

"I was worried you'd think my idea was too dangerous, so I only told you your role. I'm sorry. Anyway, the three of them were expecting this house to be haunted, so that's what I tried to give them – a monster so powerful they'd be convinced that they wouldn't be able to defeat it by themselves. You'd be pleased to know that the voice-changer bowtie was an enormous help. Hopefully, they won't try to come back. I'm sure they'll forget after a while."

"They're convinced they saw the monster that ate you, and that's what they told Ran..."

"Man, if only they knew what kind of monsters I was really dealing with..." Shinichi mused.

"Well they don't, and you know it needs to stay that way."

"Yeah..." Conan looked back up at his friend. "I just want to grab a few things, and then I'll be ready to go."

Agasa was about to protest – it would arouse suspicion to take too many things from the house, but then decided it wasn't really worth it. Shinichi had his own agenda.

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Conan hadn't returned to the kitchen yet when Agasa heard the front door open.

"Shinichi? Conan? I saw lights on, are either of you here?"

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End Chapter 5

A/N: I don't know if Halloween exists in Japan, but I imagine there must be some festival where they dress up in weird and funny costumes like that. If I'm wrong, I'm sorry. I only meant to use it as a plot device. Also, one of my reviewers suggested I split the Detective Boys up, and I'm sorry to say I already had much of this chapter in place, and it didn't even occur to me to try something like that.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get chapter 6 up this weekend, because I actually have a lot of it written already, too.


	6. Appeasement

I would like to apologize for the wait. This file has been sitting on my computer for at least a week now, and I haven't really had the time to add the author's notes until today.  Also, the text editor was giving me some grief, which added an extra couple days until I regained enough patience to try again...

Anyway, submitted for your approval is the final chapter of House of Horrors.

After all this, how could you possibly think I own Detective Conan, huh?

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Chapter 6: Appeasement

Something was pulling Ran to the second floor of the house. She placed her foot on the bottom stair, but almost stopped when she realized she had never ventured from the ground floor before. Resolving that there was a first time for everything, though, she continued her ascent.

At the top of the stairs, she tried again. "Hello, is anybody here?" She noticed light spilling onto the floor part way down the hall and started to move toward it, not really sure what to expect.

Shinichi was so engrossed in deciding what to take with him, that he didn't hear her approach.

"Conan, what are you doing up here?" She smiled when he jumped at the sound of her voice.

He turned around towards her with a big childish grin plastered across his face. "Shinichi told me I could borrow some of his stuff. Don't worry, I'll bring it back!"

She was hesitant to let the boy take her friend's things, but it must have been alright if he had permission. "How did you know this was his room, anyway?"

"I don't know... I got separated from the others at one point, and this room was the only one that made sense." Just like all the other times, he got that tortured feeling of having to lie to her. It never ceased to amaze him when she believed the lines. "Professor Agasa is downstairs, at the kitchen table."

Ran looked around the room. There was no doubt in her mind it was Shinichi's. It was pretty sparsely decorated, except for the pictures of a few soccer players, and of course Inspector Clouseau and Sherlock Holmes. The bed sat unmade under the window, showing clearly how much of a hurry he was in the day he disappeared. On the desk, she saw a dusty magnifying glass, and there was a Holmes-style hat hanging on the wall above it. She smiled because she knew the two items never actually got any use, they were just for fun. The last thing her eyes landed on was the bookshelf. She was about to go look at some of the titles, when Conan brought her back to reality. She turned to him and smiled.

The young detective stood, holding a plastic grocery bag with a few things in it. "I'm ready to go back downstairs now. I want to get a couple books out of the library, and then we should go home." He feigned a yawn for added effect.

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Ran folded her arms to stay warm on the walk back to the apartment. "So Conan, what books did you take?"

He opened the bag to make sure he had the right ones. "I grabbed a Sherlock Holmes story, and also the most recent book written by Shinichi's dad." He was surprised when she didn't react.

"Brushing up," she asked.

He put a hand to the back of his head and smiled. "Not really... just some casual reading."

Ran made it seem like she believed him. There were things she couldn't begin to fathom going on inside the boy's head, and he had made that obvious on several occasions. She couldn't ignore her suspicions, but something told her that bringing them out into the open again wasn't a really good idea either.

A few minutes later, the pair arrived at their destination.

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Around midnight, Conan snuck out of his room and went down to the nearby payphone. He fed it a couple coins and dialed an all-too familiar number.

A second later, Ran heard the phone ring. She picked up the cordless receiver from the side table, and went to sit on the window sill. She knew who it probably was, but still said hello as if it were a question.

"Hey Ran, how's it going," the voice asked cheerfully.

"Shinichi! You know, it's a good thing you called. Conan..."

He wouldn't let her finish. "...and his friends visited my house today. Don't worry, it's okay."

'How many times today have I been told not to worry?' It took Ran a moment to find her voice again. "How... did you know about that?"

"Conan happened to be at Professor Agasa's house when I called yesterday."

"Where on earth would they have gotten the idea that you were eaten by a monster?"

"I don't know, I bet there are a lot of silly stories floating around. I am Shinichi Kudo, after all..."

He could hear the slight irritation in her voice. "Yeah, well, they came running out of the house saying the so-called 'monster' was attacking Conan."

"They have no idea the kinds of monsters I'm really dealing with."

"Huh?"

"Oh, nothing! I just meant about the case I'm working on – the perps are real monsters."

"Oh... How soon are you coming home?"

Shinichi had been expecting this question, but it didn't mean he had come up with a good answer to it. "I... still don't know yet."

"Oh..." Ran replied dejectedly. She looked at the clock. "Hey, Shinichi, it's getting late, Come back soon, okay?"

"I'll try as hard as I can. Go get some rest."

"Okay. Goodnight Shinichi."

"Goodnight Ran."

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The next day, Conan found a surprise waiting for him at school. The other Detective Boys were hoping he'd be okay, but they weren't expecting him to have made it through completely unscathed. They rushed over to him as he walked through the classroom door.

"Conan, you're here!"

He looked around uneasily at their other classmates who had noticed the sudden outburst. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"We sure did underestimate Professor Agasa..." Mitsuhiko commented. The other two nodded in agreement.

Genta pulled two small pieces of glass out of his pocket. "Hey Conan, look what we found."

The smooth, clear objects seemed strangely familiar to the pint-sized detective. "Where did you get these?"

"We found them on the floor next to the big desk in the library in Shinichi's house," Ayumi explained with a smile.

Shinichi mentally slapped his forehead. 'Now I remember! These are the lenses I popped out of dad's glasses when I needed to fool Ran right after I was poisoned! Come on, think of an excuse to get them back!'

Mitsuhiko noticed something. "Hey, they look about the right size for your glasses, Conan..."

Conan acted like he didn't already know what they were. "Really?" He held one up and looked through it. 'Wow, that's strong... yup, these are definitely dad's.' It took him a few more seconds to think of what to say. "Um... I had just arrived in Tokyo when Shinichi disappeared – I was supposed to stay with him. I must have dropped them on my way out to go to Ran's apartment."

The conversation would have continued, except that the teacher came in and quieted everyone down so that class could start.

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After school, it resumed. "You were supposed to stay with Shinichi," Mitsuhiko asked. "That's so cool."

"Yeah," Conan replied. "I brought the extra pair of lenses in case these ones in my glasses broke. I should probably take them back to Professor Agasa so he can keep them in a safe place..."

Genta handed them over. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea."

There was only one more thing for Conan to do after he stowed the lenses in his backpack. "So, what should we do this afternoon," he asked.

"I wish we could keep investigating Shinichi's house," Mitsuhiko mused.

Conan tensed until he heard Ayumi's reaction to the suggestion. "As great as that would be, I don't think there's any time I was more scared than last night. We could have gotten seriously hurt, and I don't want there to be any chance of it happening again. Let's go play in the park for a while instead!"

Genta and Mitsuhiko seemed disappointed, but they weren't about to go over to the house alone. Conan relaxed as he followed his friends down the street. Another crisis had somehow been averted by the meitantei.

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End Chapter 6

End House of Horrors

A/N: So, that's it. I'm proud of myself for finishing, and I hope you are too. I'd like to take this opportunity to recognize all my reviewers:

YumeTakato, Night-Owl123, mysteriousangelgirl, neko, kristanite, Silver Sky Magician, fanfic lover, PRIVATE, Sailor Ranger, Keruha Digifox, caseclosed lover, mirXsan4eva, Paul Sheldon, you know who chan, Chou ni Natte, SimmyC, Mariko

Just as an aside, this wasn't meant to be a reveal/change-back type fic. It was just something a little twisted I came up with, and was basically supposed to fit in right after episode 20, meaning that at the end, no progress has really been made in the case Shinichi is really trying to solve...

I'm not sure if I should plug my next story now, because I don't know how long it'll take to get started, but I guess I can at least say I have something in the works that I'm co-writing (I couldn't do it without you!). So stay tuned!


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